Get Rid of Rogue Elements as Army Recruitment begins

By Prince Bill M. Kaping’a Political/Social Analyst

This week, the Minister of Defence, Hon. Ambrose Lufuma was a bearer of fabulous news for our youth! The affable, bespectacled and clean-shaven towering individual with a flourishing moustache announced that government will soon commence recruiting army personnel in various units of our military establishment.

“Like I mentioned earlier, prospective applicants wishing to join Zambia Army, ZAF or ZNS should not panic into bribing individuals whom they would think would help them get recruited. This recruitment is not about who you know, we have demonstrated that the new dawn government wants to see every Zambian have a fair share of the national cake,” the usually media shy cabinet minister, which must of course be the norm for anyone holding such a sensitive portfolio, disclosed this on his Facebook page.

Well…..before we get our youth excited with such assurances, we’d like to alert the powers that be, including all our investigative wings – ACC, DEC and Zambia Police that there are still some remnants of rogue elements from the previous regime lurking in the corridors of power. These characters upped their antennae and become more sophisticated in their shenanigans as they continue extracting a “ka sumfing” whenever recruitment opportunities arise in the civil service. Someone isn’t telling the president the truth! As patriotic citizens, it’s our intention to do so as we are in possession of impeccable evidence.

The organization am involved with has been involved in facilitating sponsorship of orphans and vulnerable children in various schools and/or colleges. And one such individual is of course, Cinderella – not her real name, who is now a registered nurse. She remains unemployed because of such corrupt elements!

When the new dawn administration advertised various job openings in the health sector, like many others, she obviously tendered her application. As fortune would have it, her name made it on what became to be referred to as the Copperbelt Province Final List of Successful Health Personnel. That’s when trouble actually begun!

Just when she thought she and her mother would now pop a bottle of Champaign and celebrate, she was subjected to harrowing experience. All of a sudden, she started being inundated by phone calls from strangers……..” The name that you see on that list is just preliminary,” they would say, “If you want your name to make it to the final list of applicants, you have to pay a K10,000 at least!”

When she explained that her family wasn’t in a position to raise such a colossal amount of money as they were actually struggling to make the ends meet, like a serpent the man immediately changed tact.

“In that case, you can pay half and settle the balance once you are deployed……” the man still insisted.

Unfortunately, the young lady was left out despite appearing on the initial list which had 1239 other names. We have the list with us! This isn’t a fairy tale at all! Such things are happening almost every day in our beloved country. Heartless individuals are preying on our desperate youth seeking deployment in the civil service as teachers, health workers or agriculture extension officers……….we have no doubt the same would be the case in the current recruitment exercise.

The only problem with ministers is that they no longer want to pick up our phone calls even when you want to relay vital information to them. We are left with no option but to vent our frustrations in the media. In the meantime, I will be calling at ACC this afternoon to report this matter.